The Eagles: Farewell I Live From Melbourne Blu-ray Review
Livin' it up at the Rod Laver Arena.
Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman, February 27, 2013
It mayemphasis on
mayhave been "farewell", but it definitely wasn't "goodbye". In 2005 The Eagles titled
their massive Melbourne, Australia performance the
Farewell 1 Tour, with the clear implication being that a
sequel would follow. Anyone who has followed The Eagles for any length of time will agree that it's never wise to count
this band out, even if they themselves sometimes seem to
hint that they are (as guitarist Joe Walsh overtly
states about guys of his age in the bonus featurette included on this Blu-ray). The band, kind of like the Energizer
Bunny, just keeps going and going, and against considerable odds, is arguably better than they were in their heyday of
the seventies, at least insofar as this often thrilling concert reveals. What becomes apparent in just the first few songs
of this almost three hour piece (recorded over several concurrent nights of performances) is just how many great
Eagles songs have so firmly imprinted themselves in the public consciousness. What's even
more amazing is
realizing that The Eagles managed to create all of this great music on a mere pittanceonly sixalbums during their
near decade long stint atop the American music charts. But time has actually been kind to The Eagles, mellowing out
some notoriously roiling interpersonal conflicts (at least between Don Henley and Glenn Frey, if not between the band
and jettisoned guitarist Don Felder) and actually improving the repartee between the band, leading to some extremely
tight harmonies and in the pocket rhythm accompaniments. The Eagles were unfairly disparaged some of the time
during the apex of their popularity for being a kind of "easy listening" rock band some of the time, but this bristling
Melbourne concert proves that the guys are incredibly versatile. There's no denying that they prefer melody and
layered harmonies to outright bombast, but there's a kick in a lot of these songs that obviously keeps a
multigenerational audience on its feet (and screaming in approval) for the vast bulk of the performances, and it's a kick
that is obviously shared by the band members themselves as they play and sing their way through a "greatest hits and
then some" assemblage of Eagles classics.
Vocalists are only too aware of the vagaries of time, sometimes watching helplessly as ranges lower and (quite
frequently) diminish, with less power and control also coming with the territory of aging. This seems to be especially
true of tenors for some unknown reason, but Don Henley, who was already well into his sixties when this concert was
filmed, shows few if any signs of loss. His voice still penetrates easily in its upper ranges, cutting through the massed
instrumental musings of the band and remaining bright and clear. Glenn Frey, about one year younger than Henley, is
also in great form. Frey tends to be somewhat more of a "crooner" than the intentionally raspy sounding Henley, and
his laid back but assured style serves as a perfect compliment to his perhaps rowdier partner. The Eagles have quite a
deep bench when it comes to vocals, and Timothy B. Schmit, around the same age as Henley, also is no slouch on
reaching the high notes in such fare as the beautiful, Michael McDonald-esque "I Can't Tell You Why".
This is a relatively "gimmick free" concert, concentrating almost exclusively on the music without a lot of bells and
whistles, other than the requisite huge projection screen backing the band and some minimal lighting effects. There are
a couple of funny bits sprinkled throughout the proceedings, including a mock feud between Henley and Walsh that is
perhaps meant to deflect any lingering memories of the
real feud between Henley and Frey. There's also one
funny use of technology with regard to Walsh that I won't spoil for those who haven't seen it, and a passing dig at Fox
News' head honcho Rupert Murdoch, delivered relatively opaquely by Henley, but which becomes clear once the actual
song starts. Not to be a total buzzkill, let alone a pedant, but it should be clear to any competent keyboard player that
Glenn Frey is not actually playing keys, or at least playing
alone, on some of the tunes, notably the intro to
"Wasted" (my hunch is one of the many other keyboard players is accompanying Glenn but remains unseen due to the
editing choices).
The Eagles' playlist includes:
- 01. The Long Run
- 02. New Kid in Town
- 03. Wasted Time (with Reprise)
- 04. Peaceful Easy Feeling
- 05. I Can't Tell You Why
- 06. One of These Nights
- 07. One Day at a Time
- 08. Lyin' Eyes
- 09. The Boys of Summer
- 10. In the City
- 11. Already Gone"
- 12. Silent Spring (Intro)
- 13. Tequila Sunrise
- 14. Love Will Keep Us Alive
- 15. No More Cloudy Days
- 16. Hole in the World
- 17. Take It to the Limit"
- 18. You Belong to the City
- 19. Walk Away
- 20. Sunset Grill
- 21. Life's Been Good
- 22. Dirty Laundry
- 23. Funk #49
- 24. Heartache Tonight
- 25. Life in the Fast Lane
- 26. Hotel California
- 27. Rocky Mountain Way
- 28. All She Wants to Do Is Dance
- 29. Take It Easy
- 30. Desperado
The Eagles: Farewell I Live From Melbourne Blu-ray, Audio Quality
The Eagles Farewell 1 Tour Live in Melbourne features both a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track as
well as an uncompressed LPCM 2.0 stereo fold down. There are certain tradeoffs that astute listeners will notice in each of
these tracks. The LPCM track tends to present the vocals in a more forward manner, which may in fact appeal to some
listeners. On the other hand, the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track has a
much more fulsome midrange and low end,
adding a propulsive momentum to the music but in turn tending to just slightly bury the voices on occasion. Both of these
tracks offer superior fidelity, with brilliant clarity delivered throughout all frequency ranges. Dynamic range isn't huge, but
there are some nice variations in volume, especially when the guys sing
a cappella.
The Eagles: Farewell I Live From Melbourne Blu-ray, Overall Score and Recommendation
At a recent Blu-ray.com staff meeting, my musical and reviewing colleague Dr. Svet Atanasov joked that I was "required" to
give
Eagles
Farewell 1 Tour Live From Melbourne a good review, but Svet need not have "encouraged" me in that direction, for this
is certainly one of the
most enjoyable live performance outings I've seen in quite a while. I was actually a bit nostalgic as the concert started up
and I realized just
what an incredible panoply of great tunes the Eagles have offered listeners through the years. The band has probably
never gotten its due for
its versatility, but sitting through this nearly three hour assemblage proves just how many different approaches they've
taken through the
years, albeit always with their own highly distinctive and easily identifiable style. Though there's some confusing online
information about what exact supplements were included in previous editions of this title, it appears that this release has
the sole feature that was included on the DVD and HD-DVD. This is an incredibly solid release all around.
Highly recommended.
